Traditionally, vehicles equipped with conventional automatic transmissions perform gear selection through static calibration (i.e., look-up) tables pre-programmed into a transmission control unit. As a result, during certain conditions, drivability, performance, trip time, and fuel economy of the vehicle are negatively impacted. For example, under conventional transmission control, as the vehicle begins to climb or descend a hill, the transmission is generally not in the correct gear for the current power requirement. In the instance where the vehicle has begun to climb the hill, the gearing is generally too high and, as a result, the vehicle loses speed because the vehicle is under powered. In response, a conventional transmission control unit will downshift the transmission to gain access to greater power and recover to a desired or set cruising speed. Through such a transition, the vehicle loses additional speed due to the gear shift under load, further affecting drivability and fuel economy as the vehicle powers up to regain the desired speed. Moreover, under conventional vehicle speed control, the controller generally attempts to maintain a vehicle set speed regardless of whether the engine is or will be operating in an efficient region under the current engine power and speed requirements. Therefore, there remains a significant need for the apparatuses, methods, and systems disclosed herein.